Why would NBC cancel this show? OK, the ratings weren't great, but that speaks to NBC's scheduling problems, not the quality of the show. This was, hands down, my favorite reality music show - even above "American Idol." (And I'm a die-hard "Idol" fan from way back).
If you never saw it, "The Sing-Off" was an a capella choral competition. It followed the basic format of other singing competitions: groups sing a song related to a weekly theme, three celebrity judges give feedback, each week one group is eliminated. On this show, the judges chose the group that went home; the only audience vote was at the finale.
The quality of musical performance on this show was so much higher than others. Viewers weren't subjected to awful auditions by clueless people, we only saw the ones who deserved to be there. And there's nothing that challenges vocalists like singing without instrumental accompaniment. A show former high school/college choir geeks could really appreciate, (yes, I'm one) this show had groups who did everything from barbershop to beat boxing - and they did it amazingly well. (My six-year-old can beat box. I'm not saying he learned it from this show, but this was one of the few prime-time shows he was allowed to watch.)
Maybe NBC will realize what a gem they had, and bring it back at mid-season when their current crop of mediocre shows have all tanked. Here's hoping!
My four favorite performances from last season (last I checked, still available as singles on iTunes):
"Grenade" by Delilah
"American Boy" by Afro Blue
"Video Killed the Radio Star" by Pentatonix (the season three winners)
Attribution: all videos from YouTube
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